Braided hat.



F. THUN.

BRAIDED HAT. APPLIGATION FILED 0612.9, 1907.

967,462, PatenaAug. 16, 1910;`

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FERDINAND THUN, OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA.

BRAIDED HAT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 9, 1907. Serial No. 396,587.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FERDINAND THUN, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of the city of Reading, in the vcounty of Berks and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improve ments inBraided Hats, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to the manufacture ofl hats, and isespecially applicable to the economical production and improvedconstruction of ladies7 hats having the quality of permitting readymodifica tions of shape and ornamentation inaccordance with individualtaste.

The invention provides for employing as hat-blanks, cut-off lengths ofcontinuously formed braids which are made of sufficient width to singlyform the hat; the middle portion of each piece of wide braid thus employed as a hat-blank being suitably shaped to'form the hat crown, andthe side edges thereof to form the hat rim, as hereafter fullydescribed.

Figure l shows a simple form of `hat made in accordance with myinvention. Fig. 2 shows a particular form of braided blank which ispreferably employed in carrying out my invention; and Fig. 3 indicates acontinuous braid from which said blanks are adapted to be cut, portionsthereof being shown partially formed to desired shape before being cutoff.

The making of braids of various kinds in indefinite lengths is wellknown as a simple and automatic operation; as is also the fact that theinterlacing of the A threads or strands in braiding is such as to enablethe fabric to be readily shaped by varying the crossing angles of thestrands. I-Iats have heretofore been made of suitably braided materialby sewing together narrow braid at the edges thereof so as to build upthe required size and shape of hat.

My invention provides for using a single width of braided fabric, cut toproper length from a continuously braided strip, to form an ent-ire hat;the braided fabric being of such width as to form when shaped the fullcross-sectional line of the hat, crown and brim, and the side edges ofthe cutoif braid sect-ion being arranged to serve as the hat rim, themiddle portion thereof as the crown, and the intermediate portion as thebrim.

The drawing shows, in Fig. 3, a particular form of braid which Ipreferably em ploy in carrying out my invention. To the right of saidfigure the braid is shown as it leaves the braiding machine, while tothe left it is shown with the flat-braided portions partially shaped bycontracting them upon the pull-string warps. o b b are iiatbraidedportions, having their separated edges o o lying normally approximatelyparallel and running at each end into connected tubular-braided portionsa a a; the latter are preferably tighter braided than the portions Z9 b.d ai are continuous warp threads, adapted to serve as pulling strings,being preferably spacedapart the full width of the fiatted tubularportions and lying intermediate of the full width of the flat-braidedportions Zi Z) Z) so as to allow sufficient width of braid between themto form the hat crown. o o are reinforcing warps for the edges o c, theybeing located close together in the tubular braided portions cz a a asshown. These warps o may be of wire or like bendable material adapted toyieldingly retain the edge of the fabric in the shape to which it isformed by the operator.

The cutoff braid section (Fig. 2) which serves as a hatblank, is readilyformed into a hat shape by bulging the middle of its flat-braidedportions b as indicated to the left of Fig. 8, so as to form the crown f(Fig. l), and by spreading apart laterally the midway portions of theedges c c while holding the ends o2 o2 thereof together at oppositesides of the crown, so that said edges form the rim of the hat. The pullstring warps Z el greatly facilitate this shaping of the blank, though ahead ring (not shown) is preferably provided as usual within the crown.The folded ends g g of the braid blank are fastened in any preferredmanner so as to provide a neat and ornamental finish ordinarily at thesides of the hat with the midway portions of the edge c c at front andrear of the latter'.

The simple form of hat indicated in Fig. l is merely suggestive of agreat variety of ornamentally modified forms which may be easilyproduced with great economy of labor in accordance with my invention.

While the use of the specifically described flat braided sections orblanks having tubun lar braided ends, as shown, is decidedly preferableas facilitating and improving the formation of the finished article, thetubu- Patented Aug. 16, 1910.

larly braided ends are not essential to securing the main benefit of myinvention as the blank may obviously be entirely flat braided as usualand yet be similarly shaped and finished.

Vhat I claim is l. A braided hat the crown of which is formed by thebulged central portion of a flat-braided section of braid havingspacedapart intermediate pull-string warps, the front and rear parts ofthe brim being formed by the side portions of said flatbraided section.

2. A braided hat the crown of which is formed by the bulged centralportion of a iat-braidedsection of braid having spacedapart intermediatepull-string warps, the

Vfront and rear partsV of the brim being formed by the side portions ofsaid flatbraided section, said side portions having their edges turnedinward and being connected at the sides of the hat by the braid ends.

3. A braided hat the crown of which is formed by the bulged centralportion of a flat-braided section of braid having spacedapartintermediate pull-string warps, the front and rear parts of the brimbeing formed by the side portions of said {iatbraided section, said sideportions having their edges reinforced by additional warps and turnedinward, and being connected at the sides of the hat by the braid ends.

4. A hat formed from a piece of flat braided fabric havingtubular-braided ends and spaced-apart intermediate pull-string warps,the middle of the flat-braided portion being bulged to form the hatcrown and its sides bent to form the front and rear brims, and thetubular-braided ends serving to connect said front and rear brims.

5. A hat formed from a piece of braided fabric having tubular-braidedends, spacedapart intermediate pull-string 'warps, and additional warpsfor the fiat-braided portion of the fabric, the middle of thefiat-braided portion being bulged to form the hat crown and its sidesbent to form the front and rear brims, and the tubular-braided endsserving to connect said front and rear brims.

6. A hat made from a piece of wide braid the middle portion of which isbulged to form the hat crown and the side edges of which are laterallybent to form the hat rim and held together at their ends on oppositesides of the crown.

7. A hat made from a piece of wide braid having spaced apartintermediate pullstring warps, the middle portion thereof between saidwarps being bulged to form the hat crown and the side edges thereofbeing laterally curved to form the hat rim and having their ends heldtogether on opposite sides of the crown.

8. A hat made from a piece of wide braid having reinforcing edge-warps,the middle portion thereof between said warps being bulged to form thehat crown and the side edges thereof being laterally curved to form thehat rim and having their ends held together on opposite sides of thecrown.

9. A hat made from a piece of wide braid having spaced-apartintermediate pull-strin(r warps, and reinforcing edge-warps, the mi dieportion thereof between said warps being bulged to form the hat crownand the side edges thereof being laterally curved to form the hat rimand having their ends held together on opposite sides of the crown.

l0. A hat madeA from a piece of fiatbraided fabric having tubularbraided ends, the middle of the flat braided portion being bulged toform the hat crown and the side edges thereof forming the hat rim.

Il. A hat formed from a piece of fiat braided fabric having relativelytightly braided tubular ends and spaced-apart intermediate pull-stringwarps, the middle of the flat-braided portion being bulged to form thehat crown and its sides bent to form the front and rear brims, and thetubular'- braided ends serving to connect said front and rear brims.

In testimony whereof, -I aliix my signature, in the presence of twowitnesses.

FERDINAND THUN.

Vitnesses D. M. STEWART, WV. G. STEWART.

